Parquet flooring



1933- A. B. BIRTLES 1,922,468

PARQUET FLOOR ING Filed June 16, 1932 1 Fig.1.

ARTHUR Ho filz-l-Lss V MWMW l atented Aug. 15, 1933 PARQUET FLOORING Arthur B. Birtles, Louisville, Ky., assig'nor to Wood-Mosaic (30., Louisville, Ky a Corporation of Kentucky Application June 16, 1932. Serial No. 617,661

5 Claims.

This invention relates generally to parquet flooring and the like, and particularly to units in the form of squares adapted to be used in forming such flooring.

The main object of the invention is to provide a square for use in this art which is built up of short lengths of tongued and grooved blocks suitably secured to each other so that each square can be applied as a unit in the construction of the flooring.

The squares disclosed herein are particularly adapted for use as units in the laying of floors in mastic. Heretofore, in this art, it has been customary to form the squares used in such flooring by connecting the individual blocks in each square together by means of a metallic or other rigid tie located in a groove transversely of the blocks. The objection to this form of construction is that the blocks of each square being rigidly connected to each other cause the square to shrink and swell as a whole. It frequently hap pens that during transit of such blocks, the squares absorb moisture and hump or curl before there is a chance to lay them, so that it becomes extremely diflicult to press the .curled squares down into holding contact with the mastic. It, therefore, becomes necessary with many of these fabricated squares to break the metal or other rigid binding strip on the back of the squares before the latter can be laid flat on the mastic.

It is an object of the present invention to provide fabricated squares in which this objectionable shrinking and swelling of the squares as a whole is eliminated, so that every square constructed according to the present invention may be laid flat upon the mastic just as it comes from the manufacturer.

A further object of the invention is to construct squares of the character described in such manner that each of the blocks composing a square shrinks individually, so that the entire across grain contraction in a square may be divided between the several blocks which compose the square.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a square of this character in which the joint between each of the blocks composing a square is constructed to form a true mastic groove in the lower face of the square.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a square of the character described in which the blocks of each square are tied to each other by strips of material which hold the blocks of each square assembled, and at the same time perspectively, of said blocks.

mit the blocks to shrink and swell individually in the completed installed floor.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent as the detailed description thereof proceeds.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a plan View of a portion of a floor constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary top plan view to an enlarged scale, illustrating the manner of assembling blocks to form the squares or units composing the floor illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of two squares connected with each other, parts of the'same being broken away to illustrate details of construction;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of parts of two adjacent blocks in position to be connected to each other; and

Figure 5 is an end elevation of the squares shown in Figure 2.

As shown in the drawing, the squares 1 are adapted to be laid against a border 2 in the usual manner to form a parquet floor or panel in which the lengthwise grain of each square is perpendicular to the grain of the adjacent squares? Each square 1 is built up of a plurality of blocks 3 having the usual groove in one edge and a tongue formed on the other edge. As shown in the drawing, four of these blocks are assembled to form a square. Of course, all four of the blocks in each square are of the same length; and the width of the square transversely of the blocks is equal to the length of each block.

Each block 3 is preferably flatbacked and has each of its bottom edges undercut to form a half dovetail groove 4 which cooperates with similar groove in adjacent blocks and squares to form a dovetail groove commonly known in the trade as a true mastic groove '7 adapted to form a getaway for the excess mastic on which the squares may be laid.

In order to tie the blocks in assembled relation at the factory and for convenient transport, in assembled form, the blocks of each square are secured together by having narrow thin strips 5 and 6 pasted across the under and upper sides, re-

As appears clearly from Figure 3 of the drawing, the strips 5 are so narrow that they will not interfere with the, entrance of mastic into the mastic grooves 7 between the blocks of each square; and are so thin as not to present any material thickness which would prevent the blocks from making proper contact with the subfloor. If desired, these thin strips may be torn oif the underside of the squares before placing the square on themastic. The material of these strips is preferably made from a strong porous textile fabric which can be made to adhere to the wood forming the blocks and to the mastic coated subfioor on which the blocks and squares are to be laid.

The strip 5 on the lower face of the square is not absolutely necessary for holding the blocks of the squares properly assembled. This is particularly the case where the ends of the blocks are groovedso as to receive slip' tongues since it is obvious that in this case the slip tongues will prevent the bending of the blocks forming the square which might otherwise occur if there were nothing to rigidly hold the blocks transversely aligned. It is preferable, however, to use strips along the lower face of the block to hold the elements of the square assembled until ready to lay on the mastic.

The invention is not particularly concerned with the method of forming the tongues and grooves in the'sides and ends of the blocks. It is obviously immaterial whether the tongues be formed integral with the sides and ends of the blocks or whether one or more of these tongues shall be in the nature of slip tongues adapted to slide in grooves suitably formed in the edges or ends of the blocks composing the squares.

After the squares shall have been laid to form a flooring, the strip 6 on the upper face of the squares can be torn off or can be removed in the sanding or scraping operation which must be performed on the whole floor after it is laid and before finishing. v

While the invention has been illustrated herein as applied to parquet floor units in the form of squares, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to use with units in which the length of each unit is equal to its width.

In practice, these units are frequently assembled to form rectangular assemblies of greater length than width. For example, in laying floors in .cvhat is commonly known as multiple herringbone, the rectangular units are usually twice as long as they are wide, and built up of a pluinstead of laying each in individual'blocks.

rality of tongue-and-groove blocks in the same manner as that illustrated herein for the building up of the squares. The dimensions of the assembled units depend upon the design of the finished iioor. It may be necessary and convenient for shipping and handling to provide several narrow strips of flexible material on one face or the other of the units for the purpose of holding them assembled during the handling or shipping thereof and before laying.

The main idea of this invention is to obtain the effect in' a finished floor that'would result from laying the floor in individual blocks so as to avoid large shrinkagelines around he square or rectangle units, and at the same time to provide these rectangle or fsquare units in such assembled form that the floor layer can lay down quickly the whole squares or rectangles as units In other words, this invention is designed to secure all the advantages inherent in the laying of parquet floors of the square design type illustrated in the drawings herein as individual blocks, while at the same time presenting them to the floor layer in conveniently assembled squares or rectangles which are not bound together permanently in the assembly.

In the claims appended hereto, the word unit is used to refer broadly to an assembly of blocks secured together by thin flexible strips such as have been described herein, whether those blocks be secured together in the form of a square or rectangle, or in any other polygonal outline.

While I have described my invention as embodied in concrete form and as operating in a specific manner in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, it should beunderstood that I do not limit my invention thereto, since various modifications thereof will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope of which is set forth in the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

l. A unit for parquet flooring composed of a plurality ofblocks of wood with the grain running lengthwise of the blocks and connected to each other by tongue and groove joints, and a strip of narrow flexible material secured to each block and on opposite sides of each block to hold the blocks assembled.

2. A unit for parquet flooring comprising a plurality of blocks connected to each other by tongue and groove to form a unit square, each of said blocks having its lower-edges provided with inwardly beveled grooves which form with the grooves of adjacent blocks a dovetail mastic groove, and a strip of narrow flexible material detachably secured to one face of each block and extending transversely thereof to hold the blocks.

3. A unit for parquet flooring composed of a plurality of blocks connected to each other by a tongue and groove joint and having mastic grooves formed between said joints, and a strip of narrowflexible material extending across and detachably secured to a face of each of said blocks to secure them in assembled relation.

4. A unit for use in parquet flooring comprising a plurality of blocks of equal length and having their grain running lengthwise, said blocks being connected to each other along their edges by a tongue and groove joint, one end of each block being provided with a groove, a narrow strip of flexible material extending across said blocks and detachably secured to a face of each block to hold the blocks assembled as a square until laid, 

